Posts Tagged ‘Business’
Are Cash Back Credit Cards For Your Business a Scam?
A typical small business needs to watch each penny. To last in the competitive business world, you need to maximize profits and just as importantly, reduce expenses. Many businesses don’t realize that they could easily be saving a percentage of their buys with a cash back business credit card. Instead of letting bank fees take away at your profits, your credit card can work for you.
How are banks healthy to offer cash back for your business?
For a long time the banks have been charging their customers very high interest rates and taking away at business profits. Business owner would just move and hope that the bank would eventually give them a lower interest rate. Times are changing though. Nowadays the credit card market is quite competitive. Business owner can now select between credit cards from a massive range of financial institution.
As the banks compete, they are offering credit cards with superior interest rates and more rewards. For example, if you need to travel a lot, you can get airline points or if you need to drive a lot, there are credit cards that offer rebates at gas stations. Even many of the larger stores issue their own credit cards with special rebates in their own store. Hence, with the increasing competition in the credit card market, credit card issuers resorted to offering cash back credit cards.
The banks can afford this to win a new customer. The cash back is swiftly balanced out by interest charges and other fees. So for most people the cash back is just a way to save the bank fees. Another advantage for the bank is that the same customers might require additional financial services in the future. The banks are definitely not losing any money by offering cash back credit cards.
Are cash back card a scam?
No, they are totally not a scam. Cash back credit cards actually do give your business some money back, but you have to be familiar with any restrictions. Most of the acquirable cash back business credit cards have a maximum annual cash back limit. Some cards have various cash back terms based on the credit card buy type. For example, you might get a different cash back percentage at a grocery store compared to a gas station or office supply store. Some cash back credit cards have a minimum spending amount before points can be redeemed.
To get the most benefits out of a cash back credit card, you have to be disciplined. It can be very tempting to buy extra things on your credit card just to get more cash back. Only make use of this strategy as long as you are healthy to pay off the card each month. Otherwise you would just be generating more interest charges. If you have no problem with paying the card off each month, try to make buys more with your credit card instead of with cash.
For some businesses the cash back maximum can also be a problem. A business with high operating expenses could easily reach the annual cash back limit in a very short time. If this is the case, think about getting a different credit card to use once the limit has been reached. Some newer cash back business credit cards offer no limit on the amount of cash back you can earn.
Just read the terms and conditions of the credit card before you apply. Many cash back credit cards advertise with phrases like “up to 5% cash back”. This normally means that you can only get that cash back percentage for just a single type of buy or there is some other catch.
Despite certain card restrictions, a cash back credit card is a very good intent for your business. Your business could be saving thousands of dollars on your business expenses. Just take the time to compare different cash back business credit card offers before you apply.
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Make Business Credit Cards Fair, Too
In late March, Representative Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) introduced a bill that would impose the same protections on business credit cards as those required for consumers under the CARD Act of 2009. Lowey’s bill would bar credit-card issuers from using hard-to-understand pricing structures, arbitrarily raising interest rates, or imposing unfair and hidden penalties on business credit cards, just as they are now barred from doing on consumer cards. While many credit-card issuers oppose this bill, which would block several lucrative business practices, Congress should pass it.and it wil to pass it then no need to worry business will going on.
Fairness alone dictates passage. Two years ago, Congress blocked credit-card issuers from employing these practices because it deemed them “unfair.” While the CARD Act protections didn’t apply to credit cards tagged “business,” the industry’s practices are either clean or they are not, regardless of whom they affect.
Credit-card issuers argue that business cards are different because they are limited to business activity. However, in a 2010 report to Congress, the Federal Reserve found that “small business credit cards are similar to individualized credit cards in many ways,” offering many of the same features, including teaser interest rates and programs to transfer credit card balances. Many card issuers operate business and consumer credit cards out of the same business units to exploit the similarities between the types of cards, the report noted.
When business credit cards were introduced four decades ago, policymakers excluded them from consumer protections because lawmakers determined business owners could examine the cards’ risks superior than consumers could. At the time, business credit cards were issued only to the largest, most successful private company owners. Today, there are 15.4 million business credit cards, according to a Pew Trusts report. Thirty percent of the 10 million monthly business credit card solicitations go to households with annual incomes of less than ,000, the report found.
Owners Hold the Credit Liabilities
The Federal Reserve identifies many similarities between business and consumer use of credit cards—not surprising, given that the same individuals are finally responsible for the debts of both. Internal Revenue Service data show that 72 percent of U.S. businesses are sole proprietorships, making those business owners personally liable for their credit-card debts. And even when the businesses are not sole proprietorships, credit-card issuers nearly always require the owners to accept individualized liability for the expenses on the accounts.
Personal credit ratings of business owners are also closely linked to the businesses’ receipt of credit cards. The Federal Reserve reports that when business owners apply for business credit cards, the issuers generally look to the credit ratings of the owners to decide whether to approve the applications. When the card holders run into trouble making payments, their individualized credit ratings are adversely affected.
Bankers argue that subjecting business credit cards to the same rules as consumer cards will make small business credit difficult to obtain. That argument is flawed: business owners don’t generally use the cards to borrow; they use them for transactions. While four-fifths of small business owners use credit cards in their businesses, only 12 percent borrow on these cards—typically about ,000. Fed data show that less than 2 percent of small business debt is credit-card debt.
Congresswoman Lowey’s bill simply extends the CARD Act’s rules to business cards. Given the similarities, offering the same protections to both is reasonable. As a basic principle, applying the CARD Act to any credit card for which the holder is personally liable for the debt seems fair.and it is clean in everything
Using Small Business Finance Software – Is Like Shooting Hoops
Using Small Business Finance Software – Is Like Shooting Hoops
I really love helping business owners with their business finances who use our small business finance software. So I spend the majority of my days sitting at my desk working on the personal and phone. It seems that the work never ends. There are hundreds of thousands of small business owners out there who need help on their finance lines.
The sedentary working life isn’t good for my health, so Brian, my Chief Operating Officer and I like to get out and get some exercise. It makes us feel superior and clears our heads; and that makes us more efficient when we are at our desks.
Yesterday it was cold in Florida, so instead of going for a long achievement outside, Brian wanted to go to the gym and shoot hoops on the basketball court instead. Okay, I was game for something new, so I decided I’d go along and learn to shoot hoops and get my workout that way.
First thing I had to learn was how to hold the basketball and the basic technique of flipping my wrist to propel the ball up and toward the hoop. Once I had that down it was learning about where to look when I was shooting the ball so it would go through the hoop.
I swiftly realized that if I aimed dead center at the rim of the hoop that I could be a tiny off to the left or right with my shot and it would still go through the hoop. Then it became – how much energy I place into shooting the ball. Too tiny and the ball would not get up and over the rim. Too much and it would bounce off the backboard or just fly over the hoop.
I started thinking about our small business finance software that we sell to small business owners to increase their income in relation to shooting hoops. Once you have the basic small business finance fundamentals down you can make the basket [get the customer sale] nearly each time and control your business money at the same time. With our small business finance software it is very easy. And to make it even easier, I do webinars from time to time to show you how simple it to implement this finance software for the business owner. Find out more about these webinars by visiting the site in the resource box at the bottom of this article.
Aiming and planning for the correct income target, and using the power of the finance software and promoting gets you the win of more income nearly each time. Tweaking the aim of your promotional efforts with the right message to the right audience captures the customer. The incorrect message to the right customer can bounce right off the backboard and get you nothing in return.
With some current changes at Google, we have place together an world wide web marketing package to make our services even superior for small business finances– but that is another story for another article – coming soon.
For more information about how this all works, visit my site shown in the resource box at the bottom of this article. Or feel free to call us at 727-448-1011. We are all about helping the small business owner worldwide, whom we think about the backbone of any country’s economy!
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The Worth of a Business Credit Card
Among the so many varieties of credit cards, one of the most underestimated is the value of a business credit card. Many people do not choose to apply for a business credit card because aside from having a definite target market— the business owners or business executives—it seems to be complicated to use. Even though a business credit card has more stipulations and has higher interests compared to other types of credit cards there is, contrary to the common conception, t can be very helpful if used properly.
What is a business credit card?
Basically, business credit card is for the business people’s consumption. Compared to the regular credit card, a business credit card has a high limit plus low interest rates. Depending on the manner of choosing, a business credit card might also bring a lot of automatic benefits.
Since it is targeted towards businessmen or those people who are heading towards building a business, a business credit card can definitely benefit these small businesses. A business credit card helps the budding business by extending payments while improving the cash flow. Aside from bearing the image of a dependable credit card, business credit card boasts of having detailed reports and giving calibre customer service as its major trademarks.
Aside from having limits and low interest rates, a business credit card provides many alternatives and numerous credit options for small businesses. A business credit card also caters to massive corporations that are crafted to aid those people who are starting with their own business to grow while closely monitoring the baseline of credit.
Simplifying business credit cards
It really pays to go to the bank when one applies for a credit card to get the chance to answer all immediate inquiries. But since business credit card is for business people who are always on the go, many business credit card issuers offers online applications for business credit cards. When one applies for a business credit card, there is no need to visit the bank. There is also no need to move in the queue just to speak to a bank representative. When you apply business credit card online, all you have to do is to choose the business credit card option that would perfectly suit your small business or corporate credit stipulations right from the comforts of your home or office. Aside from offering safe, secured, and simple processes that are designed help you take care of your starting business, most business credit cards online offer accessible features for the convenience of the business credit card holder like the online payment and reporting. Customized company logos and access to instant cash are also acquirable on line. Other business credit card online offers detailed reporting features for simple monitoring and access.
Most business credit card applications offer free fee for the first year and no pre-set spending limit or finance charges. Other business credit card offers viable membership rewards program that enables the member to acquire points towards travel, merchandise and other rewards for his or her business. Some of these business credit cards offer small businesses a line of credit up to 0,000 at a competitive APR as low as prime + 1.99% for both cash and check purchases; 100% of the line is acquirable as cash and no collateral is required. The business credit card holder or customer might receive fee-free checks as well as a card to access the account. Each day savings or exclusive savings, express approvals, no annual fee, up to 5 percent rebates on all eligible purchases, and 0% introductory annual percentage rate (APR) on buys during first half of the year of card membership are some of the great offers of most business credit cards.
Even though majority of the business credit card issuers offer great value deals, it is very important to research first what does your business needs. Whether your business credit card is meant for investing in inventory or just for payroll, it is significant to look for a flexible business credit card that can handle nearly anything. Whether you opt to go directly to the bank or apply for a business credit card online, a number of premier business credit card suppliers are there to help you find the right credit card product as simple and convenient as possible.
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